Vatican II and Its Legacy

For the Roman Catholic Church, the golden anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council will not mark a golden 50 years since the Council opened. The promise of Vatican II to become a new Pentecost evaporated into a retreat from the Church when its leaders poorly implement the Councils changes.

In a Church, excited by the boldness and the spirit of hope of Pope John XXIII, high hopes and great expectations were replaced by caution and curtailment. As this change in spirit seeped through the Church, the hesitancy of a less emboldened church leadership replaced the strong reforming commitments of Pope John.